After my death our beloved Church abroad will break three ways ... first the Greeks will leave us as they were never a part of us ... then those who live for this world and its glory will go to Moscow ... what will remain will be those souls faithful to Christ and His Church.~St. Philaret of NY

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Towards a Clearer Idea of the Church

from Fr. Seraphim Rose

Fr. Seraphim Rose makes some points in an informal letter to a convert that add up to a clearer idea of the Church. Good royal path guidance for us for avoiding the super-correct tendencies. World-orthodox could also benefit from this; if they don't just reinterpret it to justify their being in world-orthodoxy.

Quotes are taken from a letter written in the early 1970s and published in Letters from Fr. Seraphim edited by Fr. Alexey Young.

A + B + C + D + E + F = clearer idea of the Church

Vladyka John never to our knowledge expressed any doubt whatever as to the "status" or "legitimacy" of the Church Abroad. What he did express was his concern over the continued existence of the Church as a unified entity.

A

It is good and wise to think of both "Greeks" and "Russians" only the best things, those which enter into the higher harmony of Orthodoxy, which is beyond nationalities. This is how Vladyka John always thought of Greeks" and why he adopted many Greek customs which are not commonly practiced by Russians today – Greek customs , that is, which are closer to the authentic tradition of Orthodoxy, and certainly not just because they are "Greek"!

B

Concerning canons: This is a great stumbling block specifically for converts, for one thing because of the temptation to Phariseeism which we all have, and for another because canons, representing the "law" of the Church, can only be understood and applied within the tradition of the Church and in the Spirit Who guides the Church. A large part of the Church's tradition is "uncodified," being contained in Lives of Saints and patristic writings (to which there is no general index, thanks be to God – or else no convert would survive!), and part of the Church's tradition is still unwritten. The canons are the most obvious part of the Church's tradition, and therefore some converts experience shipwreck by jumping on them and trying to apply them without even being aware of the whole tradition of which they are but one part.

The canons are made for man, not man for the canons. Some canons simply cannot or should not, at certain times or in certain circumstances, be applied with strictness; hence the Church's "economy." Also, as a rule, the application of the canons (and their "economy") is the business of bishops, and they do as much as possible with mutual consultation. How much more, then, should the rest of us refrain from trusting our own judgment with regard to them? Some of them, to be sure, that concern us directly, we must know about and, if possible, being taught by or consulting with others wiser in the faith, must be prepared to defend – for example, the canons regarding common prayer with heretics, the transgressing of which involves a betrayal of the very idea of the Church of Christ. Other canons, such as the permissible age for ordination to diaconate or priesthood, do not involve any such betrayal and are none of our business, and if we were to start making bishops accountable (to ourselves!) for them it would be exactly the same as if the bishops were to start interfering in the home and job life of ordinary parishioners. In general, however, the canons are doubtless too much stressed in polemics, and if we are to remain in the Church in the difficult times it will be primarily because we are faithful to the Spirit of the Church, and not to the canons.

C

About using the term "heresy" in writings: The term "heresy" should be reserved for major heterodox views (the heresy of Nestorius, Arius, etc.) rather than applied to various smaller parts of such views, in order to preserve its full force. Yes, the "fundamental goodness of man" is of course a heretical idea, but it would probably be better to use a less forceful phrase to describe it (such as: "which contradicts Orthodox doctrine"), especially as you are discussing it just in passing, as it were.

D

About bishops: …purely idealistic preconceptions about bishops can lead to shipwreck. In our days of general decline in the Church, one should not expect too much of them. While giving them due honor, respect, and obedience, one must realistically acknowledge that (save in rare cases) they are not in a position to serve a personal guides, least of all to converts. The one outstanding exception to this general "rule," Vladyka John, to whom we believe one could have entrusted oneself entirely – made it a point precisely not to accept disciples, but rather to inspire and encourage independent labors within the Church, under the conditions of growth and mutual counsel within the Orthodox tradition. On numerous occasions we ourselves went to him to ask his blessing for various things – for example, to buy a new piece of printing equipment – and his reply was always the same: "I don't know anything about printing. Judge for yourselves what you need, buy it if you can, and God will bless your labors. If what you do is pleasing to God, it will prosper; if not, God will place such obstacles in your way that you can't go on."

If we have somehow conveyed to you that the general state of our Synod hierarchy is not good – then we have misled you. Our bishops on the whole are better than any others we know about, and probably no different from the bishops for the last 2000 years, through whom the Holy Spirit has led His Church.

On the whole, our bishops are not known as poor administrators, quite the contrary (usually, the holier the bishop, the worse an administrator he is!). If anything, their great temptation lies in taking the "organizational" side of the Church too seriously, thereby sometimes "quenching the spirit" of some members of the Church's organism. Those of us who can, must simply try to keep this spirit alive – as you have written precisely: "to turn from trusting in the 'organization' and cleave to the 'organism.'" Thereby we not only can be of service to the Church, but we become the bishops' best helpers, for we are working together with them in the true service of the Church's "organism," the Body of Christ. If we thereby suffer misunderstandings and offenses from each other (and we are all guilty of this, not just bishops!), the Church gives us the spiritual means to forgive and overcome these.

Frankly, Vladyka John during his lifetime was not understood even by many of his fellow bishops, precisely because he was always first and foremost living in the organism of the Church and never let the organization take precedence. That is his testament to us all, and don't worry if you don't understand it right now. It can't really be understood, but only experienced and suffered through as you grow in the Church and her tradition. God will send you occasions for understanding it in your heart.

E

About being open to the heavenly Church: Do not trust your mind too much; thinking must be refined by suffering, or it will not stand the test of these cruel times. I do not believe that the "logical" ones will be with Christ and His Church in the days coming upon us; there will be too many "reasons" against it, and those who trust their own minds will talk themselves out of it. … you have a glimpse of the deeper dimension, the "third dimension of thinking in the Church. You can get much from books, … but the full third dimension will come to you only through experience and through contact and a counsel with those who have deep roots in the living tradition of the Church. If Fr. Panteleimon or Fr. Neketas, or anyone else is not "according to your soul" (as the Russians say), then no will force you to take counsel of them. But also do not fall into the temptation of trusting only yourself and similar-minded converts. We Americans for the foreseeable future must be in practical dependence, to a degree, on Russians and/or Greeks, preferable on the best in both sources. This is the way it has always been in the Church, and thus can tradition be planted in a new land.

F

Concerning the crucial point of the Church as "organization" versus "organism," which the preceding points lead up to – we can only point you to the Catacomb essays in the May-June Orthodox Word (issue #44), which were written with blood; and to the whole question of "Sergianism," when it becomes possible for GPU torturers to "prove" to an Orthodox bishop that Metropolitan Sergius (MP) "violated neither dogmas nor canons." Perhaps he didn't – but do we therefore follow him and his "canons" into hell, or do we follow Christ on the narrow path to paradise, together with His quite possibly "uncanonical" followers of the last times?

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THE SISTER CHURCHES

The True Orthodox Churches of Romania, and Bulgaria, and with the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad, and with the Synod in Resistance, are called by the Grace of the Lord to coexist in Mysteriological communion.

from §4 of “Schedule of Steps in the Union Process” Feb. 2014

VL AGAFANGEL PRAYER

Lord Jesus Christ, Holy Theotokos and all the Saints: keep our souls unharmed from the destructive influences of globalism, ecumenism, and sergianism, and give all of us the strength to endure the latest onset of persecution of the Church of Christ. Amen

QUOTE

"I have taken you in my arms, and I love you, and I prefer you to my life itself. For the present life is nothing, and my most ardent dream is to spend it with you... I place your love above all things, and nothing would be more bitter or painful to me than to be of a different mind than you.”

St. John Chrysostom

QUOTE

"If we have a good priest (or bishop), we give thanks to God. If a bad one, we endure him".

- old Russian saying

QUOTE

"And here is something to which I would like to draw your attention to – something about which very many do not think about. Father Archimandrite Constantine, whom probably many of you know, the reposed editor of the journal “Orthodox Rus’”, a profound Christian mind, considered that the most terrible among all the achievements of the communists was that the communists created their own false-church, a soviet church which they shoved onto the unfortunate people in place of the genuine Church which went underground into the catacombs. Do not think that I am exaggerating or that Father Constantine was exaggerating!

Once, in the year 1918, a Pan-Russian Church Council was held. At this Council, the entire Pan-Russian Church together with its first holy hierarch, Patriarch Tikhon anathematized, excommunicated from the Church not only the theomachists and godless ones themselves, but also all those who would collaborate with them."

~St. Philaret of NY

QUOTE

"To the Russians abroad, it has been granted to shine in the whole world with the light of Orthodoxy, so that other peoples, seeing their good deeds, might glorify our Father Who is in heaven, and thus obtain salvation for themselves. But if it does not perform this purpose and even abases Orthodoxy by its life, the Diaspora will have before itself two paths: either to be converted to the path of repentance, having acquired forgiveness through prayer to God and being reborn spiritually and to being capable of giving rebirth to our suffering homeland; or else being rejected by God and remaining in banishment, persecuted by everyone, until gradually it will degenerate and disappear from the face of the earth."

from Vladika John's report to the All-Diaspora Sobor in 1938

QUOTE

The apostasy of our times, to a degree unique in Christian history, is proceeding not primarily by false teachings or canonical deviations, but rather by a false understanding of Orthodoxy on the part of those who may even be perfectly Orthodox in their dogmatic teaching and canonical situation. A correct "Orthodoxy" deprived of the Spirit of true Christianity—this is the meaning of Sergianism, and it cannot be fought by calling it a "heresy," which it is not, nor by detailing its canonical irregularities, which are only incidental to something much more important.

- Russia's Catacomb Saints

QUOTE

Let it not be thought, however, that I affirm that it is necessary to prize every peace. For I know that there is a splendid disagreement and the most destructive unanimity. Yet one must love a good peace which has a good purpose: unity with God.

-St. Gregory the Theologian

QUOTE

... To pious Christians the fact that the world has fallen into godlessness is to them obvious, and they are ready to see it as an unfortunate historical inevitability ...

Professor Viktor Trostinkov

QUOTE

If you want to have assurance that you are saved, repent now that you are young and healthy and it is manifest that you left sin while you were still able to sin. But if you persevere in sin into your old age, why then you did not leave sin, but rather sin left you.

St. Nicodemus of the Holy Mountain

QUOTE

Live in peace not only with your friends, but also with your enemies; but only your personal enemies, and not the enemies of God.

St. Theodosius of the Kiev Caves

QUOTE

Judge not according to appearances, but judge righteous judgment.

St. John 7:24

QUOTE

"If Russia is not ressurrected, a new Golgotha threatens the whole world."

Priest Vladimir Evsukoff 1980†

QUOTE

A man who does not express a desire to link himself to the latest of the saints (in time) in all love and humility owing to a certain distrust in himself, will never be linked to the preceding saints and will not be admitted to their succession, even though he thinks he possesses all possible faith and love for God and for all His saints. He will be cast out of their midst, as one who refused to take humbly the place allotted to him by God before all time, and to link himself to that latest saint (in time) as God had disposed.

St. Symeon the New Theologian

QUOTE

SCOBA, to which world orthodoxy gives such great significance, reproaching us for not belonging to it, actually is in no way a canonical organ. The Russian Church Outside of Russia was invited to take part in these conferences; however, our Church refused to send representatives there after clergy of the Moscow Patriarchate were invited. "We never and nowhere will sit at one table with them; by this our spiritual communion with the Universal Church is not broken."

Archpriest George Grabbe 1969

QUOTE

"Let us always thank the Lord that we are in the Holy Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia, which throughout the 80 years of its existence has trodden the straight, royal path of God, without ever turning aside and losing its way."

QUOTE

The passions lying hidden in the soul provide the demons with the means of arousing impassioned thoughts in us. Then, fighting the intellect through these thoughts, they force it to give its assent to sin. When it has been overcome, they lead it to sin in the mind; and when this has been done they induce it, captive as it is, to commit the sin in action. Having thus desolated the soul by means of these thoughts, the demons then retreat, taking the thoughts with them, and only the spectre or idol of sin remains in the intellect. Referring to this our Lord says, 'When you see the abominable idol of desolation standing in the holy place (let him who reads understand)... (Matt 24:15). For man's intellect is a holy place and a temple of God in which the demons, having desolated the soul by impassioned thoughts, set up the idol of sin. That these things have already taken place in history no one, I think, who has read Josephus will doubt; though some say that they will also come to pass in the time of the Antichrist.

Philokalia

QUOTE

There are three things that impel us towards what is holy: natural instincts, angelic powers, and probity of intention. Natural instincts impel us, when, for example, we do to others what we would wish them to do to us (cf. Luke 6:31), or when we see someone suffering deprivation or in need and naturally feel compassion. Angelic powers impel us when, being ourselves impelled to something worthwhile, we find we are providentially helped and guided. We are impelled by probity of intention when, discriminating between good and evil, we choose the good.

Philokalia

QUOTE

The outward Gospel of social idealism is a symptom of loss of faith.

Fr. Seraphim Rose

QUOTE

Impurity of intellect consists first in having false knowledge, ...

Philokalia

QUOTE

Isn't Marx really the third of a trio with Darwin and Freud as a practical source in the war against revealed truth?

Fr. Seraphim Rose

Letters, 1972

QUOTE

QUOTE

To: ROCA members from the MP

"You have to understand that you have long been in a false church, which implants in its members' souls, a false spirituality, which in turn takes root and grows stronger and stronger, the longer a man stays in it."

Bishop Athanasius, 2014

QUOTE

Mankind has gone mad, and we see with horror the abyss into which it is being drawn. Let us lay aside every worldly care, and let us fall down in prayer and readiness for the dread Judgment of the Lord. Death will not come with bombs and poisons. Death has already come and take up residence with us and in us, and has made corpses of us, Mammon has overwhelmed this sinful world, which is dominated by Queen Science, Lucifer himself, which with one hand makes medicines and machines for man's foolish happiness and with the other terrorizes him by means of the bomb! Such is the sorry state of knowledge and the agony of the world through and through. Let us lift up our hearts.

-Photios Kontoglou (†1965) letter to Dr. Cavarnos dated 5/10/57

QUOTE

"Psychopaths are a superior subspecies. We transcend humanity. We are Nature's Supermen. We deserve the subservience and availability of everyone around us. Luckily, every year 100-million people are born throughout the world. We have 100-million new choices every year."

-Sam Vaknin, self-realized psychopath

QUOTE

Our Saviour placed the Church in the world in order to save the world, and Satan is always trying to place the world into the Church in order to destroy the Church.

attributed to Desert Fathers

QUOTE

"If you see lying and hypocrisy, expose them in front of all, even if they are clothed inpurple and fine linen."

HALL OF SHAME

ST JOHN S&SF CHURCH BERDYANSK UKRAINE

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